Method of evaporation and apparatus therefor.



N. H. HILLER.

METHOD OF EVAPORATION AND APPARATUS THEREFOR.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 11, 1909.

1 ,071,740. Patented Sept. 2, 1913.

In ventor:

M.- maz; v Atty:

STATES PATENT OFFICE.

N ICOIIAI .H- HILLEB, 0F CARBON-DALE, PENNSYLVANIA.

METHOD OF EVAPORATION AND APPARATUS THEREFOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 2, 1913.

Application fileiljl'anuary 11, 1909. Serial No. 471,652.

- T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, NIOOLAI H. HILLER, acitizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Carbondale,Lackawanna county, Pennsylvania, have invented a certain new and usefulMethod of Evaporation and Apparatus Therefor, of which the following isa specification.

My invention relates to a method of oration and ap aratus therefor, andis particularly inten ed for the production of pure distilled water suchas is desired for the making of artificial ice, cable to the productionof drinking water on ship board and elsewhere, Where purifievap- Tcationof water by distillation is desired,

' example,

also for the distillation of other liquids.

My invention comprises distillation and condensation of water or otherliquid under pressure such that the cooling liquid em ployed in thecondensation may itself be at a high temperature, for example, at atemperature above its boiling point at atmospheric pressure.

Flirt-her features of my invention will be pointed out hereafter.

In the production of pure Water for ice making, it is found thatoftentimes mere evaporation and condensation of the water so as toproduce ordinary distilled water, is not suflicient, as such distilledwater is apt to contain various dissolved gases which impart to thewater, and to the ice made therefrom, a disagreeable taste. To obviatethis it is customary to heat and agitate the water, after condensation,to drive oil such dissolved gases; such step being commonly termedreboiling, although only a portion of the distilled water is, inpractice, re.- evaporated, the heat and agitation due to the boiling of?of ,a portion of the water. suflicing to carry ofi? the dissolved ases.The cooling water required for eon ensution, when condensation isconducted at or about atmospheric pressure, is also inniany cases, aconsiderable item of expense. When the distillation and condensation isconducted in connection with ice plants there are usually considerableuantities of warm 'water W 'ch are availa water in condensers,especially if the condensation be conducted under presure; for i incompression refrigeration plants, the water circulated through thejackets ofzthe colnpressi ui cylinders is availbut is also appli le foruse as cooling able for this purpose; in absorption refrigerationplants, the cooling water from the rectifier or condenser by which theammonia or other refrigerant is cooled down, is available for thispurpose; and in the case of condensing steam engines, such as commonlyused on ship board for example, the water from the hot well isavailable. Not only does the use of this warm water in the condensereconomize the use of water in the plant, but the cooling water from thecondenser is of course discharged at a higher temperature than that atwhich it enters, and is therefore the more suitable for use as boilerfeed water, and for other purposes for which hot water is desired.

The objects of my invention are therefore, to render the evaporation ofwater and other liquids more economical, to economize in the use ofcooling water in such evaporat ing apparatus, and to make the apparatussimple, compact, economical and relatively inexpensive.

I Will now rocecd to describe my invention with re erence to theaccompanying drawing, in which I have indicated more or lessdiagrammatically, and with certain of the parts shown in centralvertical section, one form of distilling apparatus embodying myinvention and have shown in connection threwith certain parts ofabsorption refrigeration apparatus, these parts being shown as adiagrammatic representation of: a source of supply of warm water adaptedfor use as cooling Water in the condenser when the same is operatedunder pressure as herein described.

In the drawing 1 designates a boiler in which the water to be purifiedis initially evaporated, 2 designates an evaporator in which water isei'apo'rated' by the heat of steam passing from the boiler 1 through apipe coll 3 in such evaporator 2, and 4 designates a condenser in whichthe steam or other gas or vapor produced in evaporator 2 is condensed bythe cooling action of water circulated through a pipe coil 5 in thiscondenser.

6 designates a reboiler into which the water or other liquid condensedin condenser 4, and the water condensed in heating coil 3 of evaporator2, are delivered.

7 designates the still or generator of an absorption refrigerationplant, and 8 the rectifier of such a plant. The plant also comprisessuitable pipes, valves, etc, as hereinafter described. In the operationof this plant, steam from boiler l is conveyed under pressure-forexample, one hundred p unds pressure, corresponding to a temperature ofabout 338 l b, through pipe 9 to the heating coil in evaporator 2, thiseval'iorator being maintained under pressure due to the evaporation ofthe liquid within it--for example, being maintained under a pressure ofabout 70 lbs, corresponding to a ten'iperature of about 316 F. The steamso supplied to coil 3 will be condensed therein, as a result ofimparting its heat to the liquid surrounding said coils, and will thenbe conveyed through a pipe 10 to a suitable trap 11. In the case of apure water plant, such as herein described, (and the. descriptionhereafter will be with reference to a pure water plant, it beingunderstood as stated that the general principles of the invention areapplicable also to the evapmation and condensation of other liquids) thecondensed water will. be dis charged from this trap into a pipe 12.leading to a coil 13 within the reboiler (i, said coil being providedwith a valve 11 or other suitable means for restricting the flow ofwater through the coil, so that the waterin said coil may be maintainedat a pressure above that of the atmosphere and at a cor respondingtemperature. The water is discharged from this valve let or other Howrestricting device, into the reboiler (3, this reboiler being maintainedcustomarily at or above atmospheric pressure, so that the water sodischarged into the reboiler evaporates in the reboiler to 'a greater orlcss extent, and by its evaporation and consequent agitation of thewater in the reboiler, effects the reboiling operation by which thedissolved gases in such water are driven oil.

VVater' is supplied to the evaporator 2, through a feed connection 15,the feeding water being derived from a source hereinafter referred to.Such water is evaporated in said evaporator by the heat from coil 3, aspreviously explained, the steam being conducted through pipe 16 to thecondenser 4, where it is condensed through the chilling action of thewater circulating through pipe coil 5, the condensed water beingconveyed by pipe 17 to the eboiler 6. In this pipe 17 l customarilyprovide a valve 18 operated by a float 1 in the reboiler, so that saidvalve 18 is opened automatically when the level of the water in reboiler6 falls below a predetermined level;

and is closed automatically when the level of the Water in said reboilerrises above an other predetermined level. The reboiler is provided withthe customary draw oft connection 20 for carrying away the purifiedwater.

In the stills or generators of absorption refrigeration apparatus,evaporation is nsually conducted by steam supplied from a suitablesource, as for example, by pipe 21, the water condensed in the generatorpass-a ing to a suitable trap 22. This condensed water is of courseordinarily as suitable tor use in ice making as is the water from theheating coil 30f the evaporator, and hence this Water is customarilyconveyed from the trap through a pipe 23 to the reboiler.

The so-called rectifier of absorption refrigeration apparatus usuallycomprises a pipe coil through-which the ammonia or other refrigerantevaporated in the still or generator, is passed, this pipe coil beingcooled by water discharged from a suitable spraying device 21 over thepipe coils, such Water being collected in a trough 25; the water is ofcourse heated in passing over the pipe coils and customarily is heatedto such extent as to be unsuitable for use as cooling water in acondenser operated at atmospheric pressure. It is, however, entirelysuitable for use in a condenser operated under pressure, according to myinvention, and hence I convey this water from the trough 25 through apipe 26 to the cooling coil 5 of the condenser 4; a pump 27, or otherequivalent device being provided it necessary to deliver the Water tothe coil 5. Thispump may be the feed water pump ot the boiler 1. Thewater, in passing through the coil 5 of the condenser, Will be heatedconsiderably, and in the instance assumed may be supposed to be heatedto as high a temperature as 297 F., corresponding to a pressure muchabove that of the atmosphore. This water is then conveyed by a pipe 28to the boiler feed connection, the feed connection 15 of the evaporator2, being connected to this pipe 28 through a suitable valve 29. I alsosupply, for convenience, a draw off connection 30 from the evaporator 2,leading to this pipe 28.

31 designates a gage glass, with which the evaporator 2 Will customarilybe provided, to show the level of thewater therein.

In carrying outmy process in the ap paratus described, the evaporator2,'being filled with Water to a suitable level, is

v evaporated by steam from boiler 1 passed through coil 3, theevaporation being conductt at such rate as to maintain suitable pressurein the evaporator 2 and condenser 4, for example, 'seventy pounds aboveatmospheric pressure. The steam so formed passes through pipe 16 tocondenser 4 where it is condensed by water from the rectifier 8 or otherconvenient source, and thence is delivered, from time to time, into thereboiler 6. The water condensing in coils 3 is also discharged from timeto time from trap llinto the reboiler, and so is the Water from thegenerator 7. The heated Water-so discharged into the reboiler, being ata temperature above the boiling point of water at atmospheric pressure,evaporates more or less in this reboiier, carrying oti the dis solvedgases which, if not removed, tend to give a had taste to the u'atci. Thewater in; through ii 53 and heated as a result 5 ing thiwngh such coii,delivered hoihr i a ti-ed a and in part ator ii iii my i tiiliiit is:

re herein at (*JHF Ti P-Si 0d of who ling Water, water under a, pressuremateriaiiy greater than atmospheric pressure, by exchange of heat fromsteam under pressure, and thereby c0n- (lensing suoh heating steam,condensing un dcr pressure greater than the atmosphere, the secondarysteam produced by such evap oration, by exchange of heat. with miter ata temperature above ordinary atmospheric temperatures, mixing he waterof con dcnsation of the secondary steam and the water produced bycondensation of the heating" steann and reducing the p ssure on suchWater and thereby causing rt-ttoshng thereof.

The herein descrihed method of evaprating, condensing anti tenoiiingwater, which consists in evaporating water under a pressure materially;greater than atr'nos pheric pressure, by exchange of heat from steamunder pressure, and t" reby conden ing such heating steam, condensing,under pressure greater than that of the atmosphere, the secondary steamproduced hy such erapo ation, by exchange of heat with water at atemperature above ordinary atmospheric temperature mixing the water ofcomlensation of such secondary steam and the Water produced bycondensation of the heating, steam, reducing the pressure on such waterand thereby causing reboiling thereof, and deiii' ing vater heated bysuch mmdensation into proximity to the heating which consists in waporai so as to cause ew steam ate];

E aporating a d coiahw- "riding in combination and i condenser cenni:hot h adapted to he opt-r greater than that, of til-Z miter arranged torece. iatiti'ibti', and cvaporatm condui and a trap oi condensetniit'iitit, and arranged so condensmi to said rehoilei.

i. The combination with via; a an absorption refrigeration app,- waterevaporating and condens: ratns comprising an evaporator and. a denserconnected together and adapted be operated under pressure greater thanma of the atmosphere, said condenser hat cooling: conduit connected totht J-cct'. to recei e therefrom the heaugsi tcr thereof.

.3. The omhination with thy an win-,orption refrigeration e rap z'izzingam condensing n; i t

a hoiier. an e aporator and connected together and both aria: operatedunder pressure greater 9- I v of the atmoaphere, said QVtlPOl'zttzd hara heating coduit to which steam i sa vo by said boiier, said condenserhavi ing conduit connected tothe rectitir ceive therefrt'nn the heatedcoo thereof, such cooling conduit arrai discharge the water heated in itto the as boiler feed water.

In testimony whereof i have "9: specification in the presence o scribingWitness :i'nionu n,

